Tips for Upper Management Creating an Employee Handbook

An employee handbook is a powerful tool that every business will need to ensure compliance, improve the onboarding and performance of employees, reduce the company risk and exposure, and create a robust company culture. Here are four tips for senior company management to use when creating or updating the content and policy of its company handbook for their team.

1. Work with an HR services provider to get tips and expertise for an employment handbook that’s fully in compliance.

A business benefits greatly by choosing to work with HR experts as its managers are writing the company handbook for the team. HR experts can offer information and guidance, as well as the latest updates a business may need to ensure its policies and its employee handbook are in compliance with all local, state, and federal laws. A company can also get help and tips for dealing with complicated circumstances, like a business with a team and offices in many states and differing HR and legal requirements. Another example of a complicated circumstance for creating an employee handbook is when a business has employees who do vastly different work. In this situation, a business must ensure they take the time to make different policies in its employee handbook that are applicable to the different kinds of employees.

2. Make an audit of where all remote workers on the team are located.

A business benefits when it performs an audit of where all remote employees live and work before it takes time to update its employee handbook and policy. A company is responsible for the compliance of its employee handbook and policy in every location where its employees work. If a business is headquartered in one state, but remote employees live (and thus work) in other states, the employee handbook and its policies must comply with the HR and legal employment requirements of all states where its team of employees are working from. Sometimes, state (and even city) requirements may force a company to take time to make new policies that are vastly different for its team of employees. In some cases, an employer actually benefits from creating a different employee handbook with different content and policies for the different locations its employees and team live in.

3. Keep the handbook updated as the business hires or loses significant amounts of employees.

As a business hires more employees or as it gets smaller, it should ensure that its employee handbook and policy stays in compliance. Sometimes a company may grow enough to be subject to new laws and requirements, necessitating changes or additions to the policies in its employee handbook. A business often benefits from working with an HR services provider like MP, who will work with management to help ensure that the employee handbook and every policy is in compliance based on the company’s size. Management may want to repeat this process every time its team of employees grows or shrinks significantly. Another option is to repeat the process every year.

4. Update the employee handbook yearly to make sure the business includes any new policies required on a federal, state, city, or industry-wide level.

To ensure its handbook and employee policy is in compliance, a company and its HR employees should make an audit of every policy around the same time each year. Many new laws that affect employment topics such as access to benefits, harassment, onboarding, training, management, and more, come into effect around July or August. Frequently, an employer benefits from working with an HR expert, such as the ones from MP, who stay updated on the latest information and news that will make an impact on employment policy and a company handbook for employees.

Tips for Upper Management Creating an Employee Handbook

1. Work with an HR services provider to get tips and expertise for an employment handbook that’s fully in compliance.

2. Make an audit of where all remote workers on the team are located.

3. Keep the handbook updated as the business hires or loses significant amounts of employees.

4. Update the employee handbook yearly to make sure the business includes any new policies required on a federal, state, city, or industry-wide level.

Recent Employee Handbook Posts

2023 Employee Handbooks: 5 Key Updates

How to Write a Severe Weather Policy for Remote Workers: 3 Key Steps

Recent Posts

Categories

Archives